DOVER, Del. – Erik Moses has been named president of Nashville Superspeedway, and has become the first Black man to hold that title on any NASCAR track.
Moses served mostly as president of the XFL’s DC Defenders and now leads the charge for the planned Nashville, Tennessee, reopening in 2021. The 1.33-mile concrete track was built in 2001 by Dover Motorsports and held until 2011 with NASCAR and IndyCar events.
Dover announced the rental for Saturday’s Cup race at the Monster Mile.
“Our partnership with NASCAR is for them to set the race and bring the circus to the city,” Moses said. “Our job is to make sure the big summit is ready. Make sure everyone in and around Central Tennessee and the rest of that area understands that we’ll have a Cup Series race and they can look forward to the kind experience that NASCAR fans expect and deserve. “
Moses said he was welcomed into the sector this week by NASCAR President Steve Phelps. Moses takes control in a year where the series has gone up in account of the nation’s racial problems.
“Every time you have the distinction of being the first at anything professional, it’s a humbling kind of honor,” Moses told The Associated Press. That said, I’m not naive enough to believe I’m the first person of color qualified enough to run a NASCAR track. I’m grateful [to Dover] for their confidence in my experience and the ability to lead that effort. I am also grateful to the people at NASCAR for their trust in me. I will focus on the job. I’m hired to do a job, not because of what color I am. “
Moses camped the Washington scenes for most of his career, overseeing the completion and grand opening of Nationals Park. He helped develop and host two annual college football games: the Military Bowl, the first NCAA-sanctioned comedy game in the nation’s capital, and the AT&T Nation’s Football Classic. The XFL had eight franchises and played five games out of a scheduled 10-game schedule before canceling the rest of its season in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are very excited and happy to hire an excellent leader and executive like Erik, who has tremendous experience in all areas of sports, events and live entertainment,” said Mike Tatoian, CEO of Dover Motorsports. “Erik’s addition to our business and the excellent reputation he has in the industry supports our commitment to revitalizing Nashville Superspeedway and serving the Central Tennessee community.”
Dover has been a NASCAR home since 1969 and the site of two race weeks every year since 1971. There was not much appetite among race fans for two NASCAR weekends at Dover International Speedway – noted by the seating capacity of roughly 135,000 seats in 2001 stripped to about 55,000 this season – which cushioned the blow of moving the race to Nashville. The company said it would pump $ 8 million to $ 10 million in rail for capital improvements and does not plan to add permanent seating above the 25,000 capacity currently available.
“We are working with our NASCAR colleagues and some other groups to help us modernize the track for NASCAR fans and to make sure the location and facilities where we invite our fans for that cup game and for other events will be commensurate with their expectations, ”Moses said. “I know there is a lot of work to do. Facilities, maintenance, upkeep, revitalization is what I have done a lot with the DC Sports and Entertainment Commission.”
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